Corporate Accountability and Public Participation Africa, CAPPA, has raised the alarm over a fresh gas explosion in Bille, an island community in Degema Local Government Area of Rivers State, warning that urgent government intervention is needed to avert further explosions and possible loss of lives.
The incident occurred barely two weeks after CAPPA released a documentary and report titled Danger! Bille Is Highly Flammable, which highlighted worsening gas bubbling and seepage across the community and called for immediate government action.
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According to CAPPA, its assessment of Bille on July 6 documented gas emissions from wells, boreholes, residential compounds, waterways and school grounds.
In a statement issued on Saturday, the organisation said the latest explosion occurred at about 8 a.m. on Thursday, September 3, 2026, at No. 18, Opu Ibiila Community, Bille.
It said the explosion set part of the building ablaze, shattered its windows and left the occupant, Joy Amos, with severe burns.
CAPPA said video footage obtained by the organisation showed Amos in serious pain following the incident, stressing the need for urgent specialist medical treatment.
The organisation called on the Rivers State Government to provide immediate medical care for the victim and cover all related treatment and rehabilitation expenses.
Recounting the incident, Amos, an Ogoni native, said she had regularly heard bubbling sounds beneath the floor of her apartment at night.
She said she was using her phone while lying on her bed when she suddenly heard a loud sound, after which the windows shattered and fire engulfed the room.
Amos said she managed to escape the room with her phone and power bank and raised an alarm for help.
The Vice President of the Bille Kingdom Youth Federation, Timothy Agunbiade, who arrived at the scene shortly after the incident, corroborated her account.
According to him, the phone, power bank and gas cylinder in the room were unaffected, while the force of the explosion appeared to have travelled from inside the room outward.
He added that Amos had previously complained about bubbling sounds beneath the floor and that the floor had also been generating heat before the explosion.
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CAPPA’s Assistant Executive Director, Zikora Ibeh, described the incident as evidence that the situation in Bille had escalated into an emergency requiring immediate and coordinated intervention.
Ibeh said continued official visits and sample collection without decisive action would leave residents exposed to potentially dangerous gases and further explosions.
She called for the suspension of all oil and gas activities in and around Bille until the source of the bubbling and seepage was identified and independent experts certified the community as safe.
CAPPA also demanded the deployment of emergency-response teams, evacuation of residents where necessary, continuous monitoring of air and water quality, and clear public safety guidance.
The organisation called on the Rivers State Government, National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency, NOSDRA, Nigerian Upstream Regulatory Commission, NUPRC, Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, NMDPRA, Federal Ministry of Environment, Federal Ministry of Petroleum Resources and other relevant agencies to launch a transparent and coordinated investigation.
It said the investigation should identify the source of the emissions and assess all active, ageing, idle and abandoned oil and gas infrastructure around Bille, including wells, wellheads, pipelines and production facilities.
CAPPA urged the authorities to immediately isolate, resolve or decommission any infrastructure found to pose a danger to residents.
It also called for the publication of test results and investigative findings, as well as a clear timetable for stopping the emissions and making the community safe.
The organisation further urged the government to treat the situation as a public health emergency by providing multidisciplinary medical teams, emergency clinics, ambulance and hospital referral services, as well as free diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation for affected residents.
CAPPA also demanded the provision of safe drinking water, compensation and livelihood support for households whose fishing and other economic activities had been disrupted.
“The authorities were warned. A woman has now been severely burned, while the people of Bille remain exposed to potentially dangerous gases,” Ibeh said.
She urged the government to urgently move residents out of harm’s way, provide medical assistance, identify and stop the source of the emissions and publicly account for its response.
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CAPPA maintained that residents of Bille should not be left to bear the environmental and human costs associated with oil and gas activities in the Niger Delta.